Festival of Quilts 2021

Exhibiting at the Festival of Quilts is usually the highlight of Ruby’s year and after the cancellation of last year’s show and the uncertainty about what and how it would be this year it all felt rather a daunting prospect. For a long time, I wondered whether it would even be on. As it happened, I think it has turned out to be in many ways the best show ever! Now, being home for a few days I have had time to reflect on the whole show and the new people I got to know and to look at the bits and bobs I bought too (because let’s face it, there were always going to be some of those).

I have to say that the organisers did a stellar job of the whole event despite all the difficulties and issues they had to face. It was a different kind of show to the usual way of things of course. First of all there were a lot less exhibitors including some of the really big stands, who I am sure had issues with staffing due to Covid. Because of this there was more space for all the smaller folk and with an expanded lay out to allow for social distancing the whole show was very spread out and gloriously inclusive. As a tiny player in the market place, I often find it difficult to get noticed but this year that was certainly not the case. The pitch I usually have was not available this year because of the new layout and so I had a fantastic 5m x 2m stand which really allowed me to showcase my designs and patterns and just having the bigger space meant Ruby looked like a much more serious enterprise.

There are some marketing lessons to be learned from all of this for sure and although I know I probably won’t be able to afford a space like this in future shows, it nevertheless gave me food for thought. Perhaps too, it is just that after a two year gap, I do have a lot more designs to display, so a bigger space was perfect. The four days were predictably less busy than normal - I don’t know the figures but there were definitely less people shopping. You might think this was a problem but actually it wasn’t at all. I do think the customers that were there, were really serious stitchers and after so much time at home, everyone was keen to look and chat and shop. I should like to thank everyone who came and talked to us and said such lovely things about my work and it has boosted my confidence to continue with new projects in the months ahead.

One of the very best things about being an exhibitor though is being able to browse around in the less busy times and meet fellow craftspeople and see their work and different ideas on things and of course to see old friends and compare notes and tips and ideas as well. I did not come home empty handed …..naturally. Here is my treasure haul.

The first thing I bought was the Kaffe Fassett book. Always of fan of the great man, this book is a very personal journey into his work and bohemian style and the book is littered with gloroious technicolour images of his work which is just so fascinating. Kaffe is known for his use of colour and pattern and when you peruse this book you understand how it all comes together. It is the sort of publication that should sit permanently on your coffee table, always at hand to cheer any gloomy day. It just makes you smile.

It is always good to meet up with old friends and especially after a pandemic lockdown and seeing Nicola from Cake Stand Quilts is enough to warm anybody’s heart. Her stand is always one of the most charming at the show and her floral themed quilts always exude the very essence of an english summer. This time around her ‘Tulips from Amsterdam’ quilt was taking centre stage and it is just stunning. Nicola always has great insights into the quilting world too and she has given me plenty to think about for the future with her lovely pattern books. Check out her website with the link below.

One of my other favourite stands that I always visit at the shows is Keith Shorrock and his handcrafted wooden boxes and trays and this time I was enamoured with his shaker style pincushions. I am a bit of nut for pincushions as you may know, but I couldn’t really leave this one behind. Using Petra Prins dutch heritage fabric and maple wood it is the perfect pairing for my little oval shaker sewing box that I had previously bought from him. Ever since I brought the box home, it has been one of my real treasures and a joy to use everyday. The pincushion is officially ‘treasure’ in my book too and I must admit, I plan on saving up for one of his gorgeous wooden divided trays for my sewing table now.

I always pick up a couple of pieces of text print fabric as I love these and find that having a stash of different ones always drives new ideas for me…. I don’t know if it’s the vintage book thing, or the typewriter thing or what it is, but these little pieces of thoughtful cloth always sit happy in my sewing room. I was otherwise very restrained with fabric as I know I have an enormous stash at home and I am conscious that I really should use it. I did however pick up some pieces of dressmaking fabric and you probably won’t be surprised at the tartan. My ‘outlander obsessed’ sewing projects have brought me so much joy and I am really keen to make some tartan things for winter. This viscose and cotton mix seems a practical way to bring a bit of scottish flavour to my wardrobe as it is washable and won’t crease and looks cosy for the winter. I will be writing about what I decide to make, so hope you will check back to see what happens to them and the piece of dark chambray which I definitely have a plan for.

This year I was also really delighted to discover Colette Moscrop. Colette screen prints her own fabrics and they are something rather special. The motifs are simple, but it seems to me that the joy of them is that you can interpret them in modern or vintage ways using embellishment. There is loads of inspiration on her website (listed below) but I have a plan for these beauties and it may involve some of the gorgeous hand dyed variegated threads that I also bought at the show from Paint Box Threads.

Another new discovery this year was the whole idea of ‘Dorset Buttons’. Have you heard of them? I hadn’t seen these before, but was amazed to discover this craft from long ago of making hand threaded buttons. Ginny who is in charge of this whole idea was running very popular courses throughout the quilt show and I have a little kit to try out. You can read lots more about the history of these and how to make them on Gini’s website via the link at the bottom of this post.

My final mention goes to my lovely next door neighbour at the show who was another new encounter and I hope Kate and I will become good sewing pals, as it turns out she doesn’t live too far from me. Kate Aimson is a textile artist who makes these wonderful pictures using teeny tiny pieces of hand sewn fabric, that have a totally unique style and looked stunning on her stand. You can read more about her and her work on her website via the link below.

Another element of the Festival is of course all the competition quilts and the displays of these were so amazing this year that you get rather carried away with such inspirational work. I think I can sew, but some of these pieces just blow you away, the technical skill is so advanced and the precision piecing and stitching is so perfect. One of the best parts about being an exhibitor is that early in the morning and later in the day when the halls are quieter, you can wander along these hallowed aisles and admire the work of these quilters and embroiderers at leisure. It strikes you as you walk along that there are so many different ways to express this skill, from modern free motion quilting to hand felted constructions, to 3D textile creations and the gentleness of traditional piecing and the vibrance of landscape designs. It is so wonderful to soak it all up and here are just a few of my personal favourites.

I enjoyed every minute of the show and feel buoyed up to face new challenges and continue with Ruby’s plans for the next year. For the next few weeks I am going to be focusing on family and a few projects that are just for our home including a whole cloth handquilted butterfly quilt, a skinny knitted silk scarf and an embroidered cushion. So hope to see you soon with lots more sewing chit chat. If you enjoyed reading this, and want more information on any of the people I mentioned, please check out these links.

You can find Keith Shorrock and his artisan shaker boxes here

Nicola Dodd at Cakes Stand quilts is here

Colette Moscrop and her screen printed fabrics is here

Gini and her dorset buttons are here

Kaffe Fassett and his colourful world is here

Tartan fabrics were from Roys Material World which you can find on Facebook

The chambray fabric is from Fabrics Galore here

Textile artist Kate Aimson can be found here

Paint Box Threads have a fab selection of hand dyed threads here